Kenneth

Last seen for girls in 2019 at #12,448 · #294 for boys in 2025, 1,148 births
Given to boys 99.6% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · boys
1939 · 14,715 births
Debut · boys
32 births
In top 100 · boys
104 yrs
of 146 years
Total births · boys
1,283,974
since 1880

Kenneth over time

boys

Rank among boys' names. Click any year to open it.

#1#10#100rank188019001920194019601980200020201998peak #13, 1939boys
Hover or use arrow keys to read values by year; click or press Enter to open that year.

Gaps mean fewer than 5 babies received the name that year, so the SSA doesn't publish it.

Show data table
Yeargirlsboys
rankbirthsrankbirths
2025#2941,148
2024#2841,190
2023#2621,321
2022#2631,312
2021#2581,373
2020#2431,483
2019#12,4487#2331,623
2018#2251,671
2017#2171,766
2016#16,2155#2081,921
2015#1982,033
2014#1912,153
2013#1872,177
2012#1752,224
2011#1702,217
2010#16,9925#1602,428
2009#1512,612
2008#15,4056#1372,967
2007#17,6365#1353,108
2006#11,4179#1293,243
2005#13,0107#1223,368
2004#6,76817#1193,425
2003#10,4259#1113,643
2002#1043,665
2001#13,5216#973,907
2000#13,1546#944,152
1999#9,4799#894,285
1998#9,2609#874,586
1997#6,16315#834,659
1996#7,57411#774,973
1995#5,95815#725,226
1994#5,71316#655,679
1993#3,87727#606,276
1992#4,52822#596,732
1991#3,93626#547,576
1990#2,90039#528,262
1989#3,04535#538,555
1988#1,80269#518,567
1987#1,59178#538,354
1986#1,42090#508,453
1985#1,85660#478,992
1984#1,36886#468,790
1983#1,44780#458,965
1982#1,68467#459,354
1981#1,43385#419,472
1980#1,48281#419,608
1979#1,66167#419,236
1978#1,61466#419,021
1977#1,49873#399,452
1976#1,40675#389,127
1975#1,58662#359,634
1974#1,53263#3410,143
1973#1,15195#2810,979
1972#1,30378#2712,334
1971#1,42773#2514,763
1970#1,108106#2516,800
1969#1,066106#2317,553
1968#1,09994#2318,077
1967#1,04697#2219,263
1966#1,011104#2120,834
1965#982111#2122,677
1964#932127#1824,850
1963#1,12694#1825,235
1962#978119#1825,241
1961#1,23280#1626,100
1960#1,12693#1627,701
1959#1,005110#1526,640
1958#1,028103#1426,684
1957#1,17381#1428,064
1956#1,22872#1627,432
1955#1,19770#1526,743
1954#1,27860#1726,186
1953#1,33253#1725,507
1952#1,19563#1625,909
1951#1,19061#1625,841
1950#1,39643#1523,813
1949#1,15462#1523,589
1948#1,15760#1523,550
1947#1,22854#1524,586
1946#1,16554#1522,042
1945#1,15546#1618,096
1944#1,11549#1618,093
1943#1,10353#1519,112
1942#1,00660#1518,210
1941#1,41830#1516,143
1940#97154#1515,132
1939#1,07944#1314,715
1938#99251#1414,399
1937#1,19636#1413,219
1936#1,23034#1412,486
1935#1,08441#1512,067
1934#99348#1511,800
1933#98549#1511,410
1932#91359#1411,742
1931#78474#1411,568
1930#75586#1711,705
1929#74289#1810,841
1928#82177#1711,167
1927#81780#1810,848
1926#87971#1810,342
1925#1,07450#1910,146
1924#1,15146#1910,355
1923#1,03753#219,734
1922#1,19042#219,258
1921#1,37434#228,959
1920#1,28236#237,840
1919#1,39331#266,796
1918#1,12643#276,809
1917#1,40228#276,141
1916#1,33230#276,012
1915#1,47524#285,681
1914#1,38521#304,178
1913#1,52815#333,065
1912#1,71911#332,538
1911#401,148
1910#43880
1909#1,9576#41746
1908#40692
1907#47589
1906#45534
1905#52474
1904#1,6596#57414
1903#67330
1902#78275
1901#78246
1900#90279
1899#87214
1898#100191
1897#105164
1896#106175
1895#131127
1894#144105
1893#17283
1892#157102
1891#19165
1890#18672
1889#19766
1888#26245
1887#27235
1886#27538
1885#25841
1884#33128
1883#32426
1882#37722
1881#29629
1880#29132
First appearance
1880

In the first year the SSA published name data, Kenneth was already there! It came in at #291, and was given to 32 baby boys.


Quietest stretch: 1880–1884, when fewer than 33 boys a year got the name.

See more about Kenneth
Momentum · boys
Holding steady
  • 10 spots since 2024 (#284#294)
  • 51 spots since 2020 (#243#294)
  • 96 spots since 2015 (#198#294)
  • Biggest jump: 73 spots in 1885 (#331#258)
  • Biggest drop: 81 spots in 1882 (#296#377)
Rise & fade · boys
59 yrs to peak
  • Debuted 1880
  • Peaked 1939 at #13 (14,715 births)
  • Births halved by 1992, 53 yrs later
Top of the charts · boys
Top 100 for 104 yrs
  • Top 10: never
  • Top 100: 104 yrs · run 1898–2001
  • Top 1,000: 146 yrs · run 1880–2025
Share of babies · boys
1 in 73
  • Highest: 1 in 73 boys born in 1951 were named Kenneth (1.4%)
  • Latest: 1 in 1,488 boys born in 2025 (0.07%)
  • Its best rank, #13 in 1939, was only 1 in 75 (1.3%) — a smaller share of a much bigger birth year
Era · boys
The 1950s
  • 20.5% of all boys named Kenneth (262,819) were born in this decade
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1880s362#197 (1889)#288
1890s1,298#87 (1899)#138
1900s4,579#40 (1908)#60
1910s43,248#26 (1919)#31
1920s99,490#17 (1928)#20
1930s125,111#13 (1939)#15
1940s198,553#15 (1947)#15
1950s262,819#14 (1957)#16
1960s227,531#16 (1960)#20
1970s111,489#25 (1970)#33
1980s89,110#41 (1980)#47
1990s58,254#52 (1990)#70
2000s34,090#94 (2000)#120
2010s20,213#160 (2010)#196
2020s7,827#243 (2020)#267

All figures count published births only (names given to at least 5 boys in a year). Registrations before 1937 are incomplete, so early shares and totals run low.

Kenneth in 1998

girls
#9,260
9 births · 1 in 196,328 girls
boys
#87
4,586 births · 1 in 417 boys

Top girls' names in 1998

  1. #1Emily26,188
  2. #2Hannah21,376
  3. #3Samantha20,195
  4. #4Sarah19,898
  5. #5Ashley19,875
  6. #6Alexis19,778
  7. #7Taylor18,576
  8. #8Jessica18,239
  9. #9Madison17,787
  10. #10Elizabeth15,193
  11. #9,260Kenneth9

Top boys' names in 1998

  1. #1Michael36,618
  2. #2Jacob36,031
  3. #3Matthew31,146
  4. #4Joshua28,095
  5. #5Christopher27,007
  6. #6Nicholas26,632
  7. #7Brandon23,832
  8. #8Tyler23,712
  9. #9Andrew23,664
  10. #10Austin23,478
  11. #87Kenneth4,586
More about 1998

girls

1,766,949 girls got a published name in 1998; 1 in 196,328 of them was named Kenneth, which outranked 44.2% of the 16,601 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 11.2% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Kenneth
  1. #8,584Zohra10
  2. #8,584Zola10
  3. #8,584Zori10
  4. #9,260Kenneth9
  5. #9,260Aalliyah9
  6. #9,260Aastha9
  7. #9,260Abbe9
  8. #10,122Aaniyah8
  9. #10,122Aasiyah8
  10. #10,122Abbegale8

Tied with 861 names at #9,260; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1997
Risers
  1. 2,123Calista#2,820#697
  2. 1,165Ireland#1,983#818
  3. 1,158Abril#2,116#958
  4. 755Mya#993#238
  5. 619Ally#1,036#417
Fallers
  1. 586Yulissa#424#1,010
  2. 462Moesha#943#1,405
  3. 397Yulisa#985#1,382
  4. 376Tonya#905#1,281
  5. 347Xena#765#1,112

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

boys

1,911,366 boys got a published name in 1998; 1 in 417 of them was named Kenneth, which outranked 99.2% of the 11,311 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 14.7% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Kenneth
  1. #84Spencer4,619
  2. #85Blake4,607
  3. #86Seth4,587
  4. #87Kenneth4,586
  5. #88Dalton4,565
  6. #89Paul4,321
  7. #90Miguel4,256
Biggest movers since 1997
Risers
  1. 1,736Tyrese#2,347#611
  2. 805Zion#1,499#694
  3. 785Mekhi#1,706#921
  4. 743Tyriq#1,519#776
  5. 741Tavian#1,599#858
Fallers
  1. 429Coty#918#1,347
  2. 367Anfernee#838#1,205
  3. 326Jessy#962#1,288
  4. 295Mickey#966#1,261
  5. 280Mikal#1,000#1,280

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

See the top 100 for 1998